Sponsored: accurate stock valuations aren't easy. We spoke to uni catering managers about the stock-taking process and they shared their experiences

Posted by Julian Owen | February 15, 2018 | Catering & hospitality

- Keeping the product list up to date is time consuming Items are continually being purchased, therefore the list needs to be constantly updated.

- Product prices change over time If the final stock valuation figure is going to be accurate, the prices detailed need to be up to date

- Painful printed spreadsheets Long printed spreadsheets can be hard to manage and mistakes can easily happen during the stock-taking process

- Counting mishaps If the quantity counted is recorded as units instead of cases, the valuation figure for this stock line will be wrong by an order of magnitude (e.g. counted five cans of beans, recorded as five cases).

PITSTOP FROM PELICAN CAN RESOLVE ALL THESE ISSUESPitstop is an online stock-management system which has been developed by Pelican Procurement

- Creates bespoke stock sheets to reflect your actual store setupUsers can create multiple ‘stores’ (locations) and allocate products from their inventory into the stores where stock is held

- Only counts products which are important to you If a product isn’t of interest it can be marked as a ‘non-managed’ product and excluded so it doesn’t feature on the stock count sheets

- Automatically keep stock sheets up to date When a new stock-check is started Pitstop notifies you if there are any products which are ‘unallocated’, ensuring that stock lists are always kept up to date

- Record stock counts directly on mobile devices Users can enter stock-check information directly onto tablet or phone, saving valuable time and reducing input errors. The system automatically saves recorded stock figures and has the facility to work in areas where there isn’t a Wi-Fi or data signal

- Counts products the way that best suits you Products can be configured so the stock counter can record a unit, case or the weight of the product being held in stock, or a combination of all three measures

- Calculates accurate stock valuation figures that you can trustOnce all items have been counted, the stock-check can be closed, and a stock valuation figure is accurately calculated

Pitstop is one of the available modules within Pi, the award-winning cloud-based procurement system developed by Pelican Procurement Services. The Pi system can also help you with invoice payment management, online supplier ordering, menu cost management, allergen and nutrition monitoring, management reporting and so much more.